The domain of this invention is remote services offered by financial organizations such as banks and/or insurance companies to their customers.
More precisely, the invention relates to a method and a system enabling customers of a bank or an insurance company to securely and quickly access services offered by the said bank or insurance company to its customers, from a remote location using a microphone connected to a communications network.
The problem that arises is to prevent a dishonest user from accessing the services offered by the bank or insurance company without being authorized to do so, without paying the corresponding costs, or from claiming that he did not request the services that were debited to him.
To solve this problem it has been proposed to use access keys generated by the customer using peripheral equipment. Apart from their costs, these solutions are not very practical and take a long time to set up. The problem that arises can only really be solved if a solution is known to another problemxe2x80x94how to design a method and system that is convenient to use and that can be quickly and economically installed. Ease of use and time savings are major problems for any product aimed at the general public, and cannot be ignored.
In other domains, such as telephone subscriber cards (document CA 2 085 775 in the name of Michel BOURRE), telephone games (document FR 2 702 181 in the name of Lucas GORETA), and telephone number dialers (document WO 96 04741 in the name of Andrew MARK), it has been proposed to use a card emitting DTMF type encrypted acoustic signals. Thus, the holder of a card of this type can couple it to the microphone in the telephone handset to automatically transfer his identifiers to the computer services. Since these identifiers are encrypted, it may be thought that a third party will be incapable of understanding the contents. However, there is nothing to stop the signals emitted by the card from being recorded, and a defrauder in possession of this type of recording could substitute himself for the card holder.
Therefore the solutions proposed by M. BOURRE, L. GORETA and A. MARK, transposed to remote services offered by financial organizations, would not prevent a dishonest user from accessing services offered by the bank or insurance company without authorization.
Patent application DE,A,43 25 459 deposited by Raymond H. EILESE describes a calculator that emits acoustic identification signals that vary in each operation. Therefore, there is no point in a defrauder recording this type of acoustic signal. However, its large size, the fact that it is cumbersome and inconvenient to use and its high cost price prevent it from satisfying the objectives of this invention, namely to design a method and a system that are convenient to use and can be quickly and economically installed. In fact, a customer of a bank or an insurance company will not call upon the services of the said bank or the said insurance company unless access is fast and easy.
The objectives of this invention are achieved, and the problems that arise with techniques according to prior art are solved according to the invention by means of a method comprising the following steps:
the bank or insurance company provides each of its customers with a card, the same size as a credit card, customized by identifiers specific to each card and to each customer,
the said card emits short acoustic DTMF type identification signals, at least partly encrypted and varying for each operation, when the customer of the bank or insurance company (12) uses it,
the said acoustic signals are received by the microphone and are transmitted through the communications network to the bank or insurance company""s computer service,
the transmitted signals and the customer and card identification data stored by the computer service are processed and electronically compared by the bank or insurance company""s computer service.
Thus with this method, the bank or insurance company can verify that the caller actually has an authentic card and not a computer artifice. He can also identify the card holder as being a person authorized to use the offered services. Consequently if the results are conform, the customer is immediately put into contact with the voice server of the bank or insurance company. Furthermore, defrauders cannot determine identification data since they were automatically transmitted in encrypted form. Furthermore, with the recorded acoustic signals in any form whatsoever, a defrauder will be unable to identify himself to the bank or insurance company""s computer services and benefit from their services. The acoustic identification signals are different for each operation, in other words every time that the card is used.
It is noted that, as the term is employed in this specification, the emission of acoustic signals by the card is considered to be xe2x80x9cusexe2x80x9d of the card. Thus, when it is stated herein for example that the acoustic signals are different every time the card is used, it is to be understood that the acoustic signals are different each time they are emitted.
Preferably the said card:
also counts the number of times C(p,n) that it is used,
emits acoustic signals representing the number of times C(p,n) that it has been used,
encrypts acoustic signals as a function of the number of times C(p,n) that it has been used.
Also preferably, the said computer means for processing and electronically comparing the transmitted signals and the customer and card identification data held by the bank or insurance company""s computer service,
store the number of times C(p,m) that the card has been used at the time of the last validated operation,
compare the number of times C(p,n) that the card has been used at the time of the current operation, with the memorized number of times N1,
refuse the current operation if C(p,n) is less than or equal to C(p,m) and continue verifying the current operation if C(p,n) is greater than C(p,m),
recalculate electronic signals Sxe2x80x2 (p,n) as a function of identification data and the number of times C(p,n) that the card was used, during the current operation, and then compare them with the transmitted electronic signals S (p,n). If the values agree, the customer may then immediately be connected to the voice server of the bank or insurance company.
Note that the use of a microcircuit to encrypt, by means of a counter, identification codes exchanged between an emitter and a receiver was described in patent application EP 0 459 781 A1 deposited in the name of NANOTEK LIMITED.
In order to increase security, in one variant embodiment, the method also comprises a step in which the customer uses a keypad associated with the microphone and/or the card to send a pin code. After transmission to the bank or insurance company""s computer service through the communications network, this pin code is processed and compared with the customer""s pin code held by the bank or insurance company""s computer service.
Thus the bank or insurance company can check that the caller is actually the person authorized to be connected to their services. A stolen card cannot be used by the thief, since he does not know the pin code.
In another variant embodiment also designed to increase security of the method and to make it impossible for the customer to dispute the order that he made to the bank or insurance company, the method also includes the following steps:
orders given by the customer to the bank or insurance company are validated by the customer by using the card so that it sends an encrypted acoustic validation signal,
the computer service records the said validation signal.
Advantageously, an acknowledgment is sent to the customer.
With this method, the customer used an electronic signature to validate the order that he gave to the bank or insurance company.
The invention also relates to a system enabling customers to a bank or insurance company to quickly and reliably access services offered by the said bank or the said insurance company to their customers. This system is capable of understanding the means of implementing the method described above and its variant embodiments.
More particularly:
The system according to the invention comprises a card, the same size as a credit card, customized by specific identifiers for each card and for each customer, provided by the bank or insurance company. The card comprises means of emitting short acoustic identification signals of the DTMF type. These acoustic signals are emitted when the customer of the bank or insurance company controls the emission means using an element accessible from the outside of the card. The card also comprises encryption means in order to encrypt at least part of the acoustic signals, and to vary them whenever the card is used.
The system according to the invention comprises a telephone handset comprising a microphone used to receive acoustic signals, and to transform them into electrical signals that can be transmitted through the communications network.
The system according to the invention also comprises computer means dependent on the bank or insurance company""s computer services connected to the communications network and remote from acoustic signal emission means. The said computer means comprise:
a database containing the references of the cards and customers and their identification data,
processing means and means of comparing the electronic signals and identification data contained in the database.
Thus with this system, the bank or insurance company can verify that the caller has actually an authentic card and not a computer artifice. Furthermore, the bank or insurance company can also identify the card holder as a person authorized to use the services that they offer. Consequently if the card is conform, the customer will immediately be connected to the server or the bank or insurance company. Furthermore, a defrauder will not be able to identify himself to the bank or insurance company""s computer services using a recording of the acoustic signals in any form whatsoever, since the acoustic identification signals vary during each operation, in other words every time that the card is used.
Preferably, the card also includes:
an incremental counter interconnected to emission means and encryption means that is incremented by at least one unit every time that the card is used.
Consequently, the state of the incremental counter is sent to the computer means and acoustic signals are encrypted as a function of the state of the incremental counter.
Preferably, the said computer means also comprise:
means of memorizing the state C(p,m) of the incremental counter at the time of the last validated operation,
means for comparing the state C(p,n) of the incremental counter emitted during the current operation with the state C(p,m) of the memorized incremental counter.
Consequently, the check on the current operation is refused if C(p,n) is less than or equal to C(p,m) and is continued if C(p,n) is greater than C(p,m).
Also preferably, the said processing means and the said means of comparison of the electronic signals and identification data contained in the database include means of recalculating the electronic signals as a function of the state C(p,n) of the incremental counter and the identification data, and then comparing them with the transmitted electronic signals. Consequently if agreement is found, the customer can immediately start communications with the voice server of the bank or insurance company.
In one variant embodiment designed to increase the security of the system, the system also comprises second means of comparing a customer""s pin code stored in the database, with a pin code input by the customer. This code is emitted by means of a keypad associated with the telephone handset and/or the card, and is transmitted to the bank or insurance company""s computer means, through the communications network.
Thus, the bank or insurance company can verify that the caller is actually the person authorized to access their services. A thief cannot use a stolen card because he does not known the pin code.
In another variant embodiment, also designed to increase the security of the system and to make it impossible for the customer to dispute an order that he gave to the bank or insurance company, the system is such that:
when the customer activates the said card, it emits an encrypted acoustic signal to validate orders given by the customer,
the said computer means include means of detecting and recording the validation signal.
With this system, the customer validated the order that he made to the bank or insurance company with an electronic signature.
Advantageously, in this case the computer means also include means of printing an acknowledgment of orders made, addressed to the customer.